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Via Rail to scrap ‘red cap’ porters that help people in wheelchairs

Via Rail is laying off 24 full-time workers at Toronto’s Union Station, and scrapping porters who help passengers with special needs.

Barely a month after averting a strike, Via Rail announced it is laying off more than 50 workers, including "red cap" porters who help the elderly and mobility challenged. (Steve Russell / Toronto Star) | Order this photo

Barely a month after averting a strike, Via Rail announced it is laying off more than 50 workers, including “red cap” porters who help the elderly and mobility challenged.

Up until now, red cap porters have helped people in wheelchairs with bags and getting onto the train.

But Via Rail announced Tuesday they will be eliminating all porters in favour of more “flexible” station attendants.

Porters are currently available at Union Station in Toronto, and in Central Station in Montreal. In total, 24 red cap porters are being cut.

Every Tuesday, Leonard Marsh travels from Brantford to Toronto on Via Rail. He said porters help him with everything from getting to the train on time to getting his wheelchair onto the train’s lift.

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“I don’t know what I’m going to do,” Marsh said.

Most of the 56 layoffs across the Montreal-Toronto corridor are for ticket salespeople and red cap porters.

While about 24 full-time positions in total are being eliminated from Union Station, 19 job positions are being created, including 14 new station attendants.

These station attendants will replace the porters at Union Station, helping people with a variety of needs, including any mobility challenges.

Those who are currently employed as porters may apply for the new position, said Via Rail spokesperson Mylène Bélanger.

Bélanger said the company needs more flexible employees who can help with any service request — not just baggage.

“Porters have become obsolete,” she said.

But Marsh disagrees. He said he notices a big difference between the help he receives from porters, who have special training on how to deal with people in wheelchairs, and the help he receives from general attendants at other stations.

“The guys who work at the stations, it’s almost like they don’t want to do it,” he said.

The Crown corporation will also be laying off ticket salespeople and other workers. Electronic ticket kiosks will be replacing nine workers at stations in Brampton, Aldershot, Chatham, Stratford, Guildwood, Cornwall and Woodstock.

That means those stations will be entirely self-service, without customer support staff to help with things like baggage or ticket sales.

In Brockville, two employees were cut to make way for new kiosks, but the station will still have some service agents. Ticket kiosks will be installed just before the layoffs take effect Oct. 25.

Canadian Auto Workers union spokesman Bob Fitzgerald, who represents Via Rail service employees, said he was blindsided by news of the staff cuts.

The union just finished negotiations with Via Rail in June after narrowly avoiding a strike.

He said he was told the cuts are due to a federal push to get Crown corporations to tighten their belts. Via Rail is currently facing a $419-million deficit.

“This is going to put people on the street,” he said.

Bélanger said the layoffs reflect the changing nature of travel. Customers are used to buying tickets electronically and online, and want more flexible customer service.

“Passengers won’t notice any changes to the level of service,” she promised.

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